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Tuesday, 11 November 2014

Barry Forshaw on Euro Noir

I'm delighted to welcome a fellow reviewer to my humble blog.

Barry Forshaw is a well known aficionado of all things crime, be they on the large or small screen or in print. His reviews and opinions have been aired on many platforms including TV, radio and his own review site Crime Time. His friends and contacts include everyone who's anyone in crime fiction circles

His opinion is sought by many and granted only onto the finest writers around. I've been lucky enough to read his latest release "Euro Noir" which looks at the cream of European crime writing both past and present. It's a wonderful guide which can be guaranteed to point you towards some fantastic entertainment.

I've asked him a few questions on compiling Euro Noir and posted his answers below. Feel free to comment at the bottom of the page.

1.The
knowledge and familiarity you show with the novels and authors discussed,
suggests this guide has been years in the making. Can you tell me how you went
about putting together such a comprehensive guide? BF: Like everything I've ever done as a writer, it was actually an
organic process. I've been writing about these novelists for years (for a
variety of newspapers and magazines, doing broadcast interviews with them and
chairing panels). So without really trying, I suppose I built up a level of
expertise in the subject. And by ‘organic process’, I mean that I've always –
practically all my life -- been taking notes on and writing about books and
films. I even have battered ringbound notebooks full of such things from the
age of 12 onwards! Not that I can recycle any of that material-- too many
spelling mistakes!

2.Euro
Noir is a fantastic introduction to many different authors which includes those
still writing and some who are sadly no longer with us. How did you go about
selecting which authors to include? BF: I
appreciate your kind comments. Actually, I tried to be as inclusive as I could
of both living and dead authors -- but as soon as the book was published, I
gritted my teeth and waited for people to point out who was missing.
Fortunately, I haven’t had too many such comments! But it was always supposed
to be a concise guide in any case.

3.While discussing the various novels listed you
provide a fair and balanced opinion, being unafraid to highlight clichés or failings
in characters. How important to you was it to provide this fairness? BF: I don't think anybody would read a book
like Euro Noir if I hadn’t tried to
be objective. Having said that, I always try to err on the side of the positive
as it is a guide, and there are inevitably writers with whom I'm not in
sympathy – who others may adore!

4.I
got the impression that a lot of the novelists included in Euro Noir are more
vocal on social issues in their writing than their British or US counterparts. Which
UK or US authors do you rate as being the most socially aware in their novels? BF: That's actually a sore point; I get a
certain amount of stick from British and American writers who say ‘We’re just
as socially committed as the Europeans you write about!’ But there is
undoubtedly a public perception – not entirely incorrect-- that European
writers freight more social commentary into their novels. But if you want
political anger, look at Val McDermid in this country and James Lee Burke in
the US!

5.You
cover eleven different countries in Euro Noir as well as revisiting “Scandicrime”.
Where do you plan to focus your magnifying glass next? BF: I mentioned above, I was getting a hard time from British crime
writers for not giving them enough attention, although I actually write more
about British writers than anyone else. Maybe I'll stop being beaten about the
head when the next-book-but-one appears, Brit
Noir, which will be published in 2016. But before that, I’ve got The Detectives and Sex and Film: The Erotic in British, American and World Cinema!
There will be plenty of crime movies in the latter, of course…

6.As
well as covering crime fiction you also look at cinema and television
programmes for each country or area. Which medium do you prefer? BF: Boy, that's a difficult one; I love all
three mediums with a passion! So the fence-sitting answer has to be: whichever
medium I’m engaged with at any given moment!